Advice Sought please - Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum

guyute65045 · 10-02-2009, 09:27 PM

Good evening all,
I am in need of some advice. I am working on a small commercial project at the moment and have had a ridiculous run of bad luck with staff. I mobilized on Tuesday and started to install silt fence after a meeting, had to take wed off due to state testing. Back at it on Thursday after having a laborer go out with a blown knee, and had 2 operators quit on wed evening. I am down to me and one laborer until I rehire, this project has a 4 month completion deadline and the site super is freaking out (understandable) I am a sub. I have called in a couple of favors for tomorrow, but realistically am looking at the better part of a week until I am back to staffed if I can find some people, It is fall push. As a business owner I am wondering what to do, as a person I am a stubborn MF but that is not always a good thing. I want to try to hunker down and get it done however it is possible, but murphy is already starting to get me, just paid to haul out 25 loads of topsoil because of some trees that the state likes. As a GC would you want to hear early on that things are going to drag on, or no.
What I have to do:
Basement dig, 70x 100 5ft avg cut 1 ft of dewatering, 46 7x7 piers inside
Sink 10gal water tank
Water, sewer and lights
build a road(150ft)
some sidewalks and slabs
firetruck turnaround

Anybody need some work?

what would you do, I have 5 resumes I have called on today, have spoken to the GC about my staffing problems and have called everybody I know asking for help. I dont know what else to do.
Thanks,
John

jhlwstdnt · 10-02-2009, 09:56 PM

I would stop giving him information that he can use against you at a later date.

Did you provide the GC with a schedule for your scope of work? Also, did the GC provide you with a schedule that incorporated your schedule? Or, did the GC provide you with a schedule that shows your scope and durations?

Two tactics I use to drive a schedule (1) I ask the sub to provide me with his durations and (2) his manpower. If I suspect that the sub is slowing down, I then have a reference point that tells me if he is lacking men or just taking alot longer to finish the job.

If you don't have a baseline schedule, I would continue business as usual while you work out your man power issues. You may want to sit down and break out a schedule for him (and yourself) to better understand how you plan to man the job and in what sequence. See if you can finish an area for him to get the next sub in and that way there are no delays to the critical path schedule.

Evan03 · 10-04-2009, 01:44 PM

my father and i have no employes, when were busy its 10-14 hour days lunch on the run and working weekends. im in good with gravel pit we get materials from and we hire there trucks from time to time and im alloud to run alone on weekends to get materails hauled on saterday n ssundays.

cant forget the all nighters and fights with the wife because i get home and am out in the garage all night wrenchn on equipment so we can work the next day.

you can get it done.

rino1494 · 10-04-2009, 05:31 PM

If you were closer, I'd help you out. Things are slow and there are alot of qualified ppl out of work. Ask around and bring someone on.

You gotta look at the reason that 2 guys quit also. Don't forget, please don't cry to the GC. They do not wanna hear it.

dayexco · 10-04-2009, 06:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rino1494

Don't forget, please don't cry to the GC. They do not wanna hear it.

amen

tgeb · 10-04-2009, 08:16 PM

Concentrate on one task at a time. Don't let the full scope of the project overwhelm you.

You are not going to do it all this week anyway. Get done what you can, put the word out that your looking to hire.

Maybe you can get the dig completed and sub out the concrete work while working on the roadway, water lines, sewer pipe, what ever. There are ways to get this done.

Take a breath..... think it through, you can handle it.

Get 'er done! Make some $$.

dayexco · 10-04-2009, 08:21 PM

tom, i gotta say, and i truly appreciate your optimism

tgeb · 10-04-2009, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dayexco

tom, i gotta say, and i truly appreciate your optimism

Some days, Gene, I think we are our own worst enemy. We think our asses are whipped and then make it so.

I have completed plenty of tasks/projects that one man could not do. But the tasks are done, and I'm still here.

I love a challenge....

guyute65045 · 10-05-2009, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tgeb

Concentrate on one task at a time. Don't let the full scope of the project overwhelm you.

You are not going to do it all this week anyway. Get done what you can, put the word out that your looking to hire.

Maybe you can get the dig completed and sub out the concrete work while working on the roadway, water lines, sewer pipe, what ever. There are ways to get this done.

Take a breath..... think it through, you can handle it.

Get 'er done! Make some $$.

Thanks for talking me off the edge of the roof, I needed that, in fact I needed all the advice. I had all my ducks in a row, and one by one they started to fall apart. I am getting back on track, got 3 people back, GC is still pushing the time line, but I don't mind working hard as long as I am not trying to do the work of 3 alone. Now I need to get my native to pass a sieve and I can start to see some things go right fora change.

tgeb · 10-05-2009, 07:07 PM

You'll get it all worked out John.

Don't let the GC pushing get you too worked up.

A friend of mine once said he told the GC when asked "How soon will you be done?" He responded, "It will not take me as long to finish this, as it will for you to sign a check to pay for all this work."

Their job is to push don't let em get you stressed over it.